


Lose the Cape

by Musetotheworld



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Balcony Scene, Cat knows what Kara needs, F/F, and Kara knows what Cat needs
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-02
Updated: 2018-05-02
Packaged: 2019-04-30 23:24:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,069
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14507739
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Musetotheworld/pseuds/Musetotheworld
Summary: Even superheroes deserve a night off. And so do CEOs.





	Lose the Cape

**Author's Note:**

> Quick little ficlet written at work because I gave someone too many Kara feels and suddenly we’d plotted this out and I just had to fill in the spaces. I’m actively working on both my multichaps, so stay tuned for one update or another on those soon. Got a little sidetracked moving into a new apartment a week ago, and a few issues that popped up with that. Those are starting to settle, so hopefully I’ll be back to a consistent writing schedule soon.

Kara pauses for a moment while on her usual patrol of the city, taking a second to hover in place and look up at the night sky. She’s far enough up that the glow of the city lights has started to fade, letting more stars shine in the sky than even her eyes can see while on the ground. It’s peaceful up here, quiet, and every time Kara stops for a moment like this she wishes the peace could last a little longer.

But National City’s hero doesn’t have the time to spare, and long before Kara could ever tire of looking at the stars she hears sirens howling below her. That’s her cue, and the stars are left behind while she helps put out a small fire before it can cause too much damage.

Then it’s back up on another loop around, until she’s reached her usual halfway point above CatCo. She likes to stop here, in the center of downtown, and take in the sight of the city stretched around her. Every light, every car, every house. These people have welcomed her, look to her for help and security, and she can never forget the responsibility she has to them.

They’ve given her a home, the least she can do is give them a little peace.

“You look tired, Supergirl,” a voice comes from a balcony as familiar to Kara as her own apartment. “Come down here and sit for a minute.”

Quickly deciding the rest of her patrol can wait, Kara glides down for a landing. Responsibility or no, she hasn’t seen Cat in a few weeks and she isn’t about to turn down the chance now. Not when there’s no way of knowing when Cat will be back in town again. Not when the sight of her reignites the smothered longing Kara feels every time this remarkable woman comes back into her life.

“Cat, I didn’t know you were back in town.” It still feels weird not keeping careful track of Cat’s schedule. It’s been more than a year since Kara was her assistant, but old habits die hard, and the empty space on her phone where Cat’s carefully arranged and color-coded calendar used to sit still looks weird anytime Kara sees it.

“Little birds not filling you in the way they used to?” Cat teases, turning to face the hero in a move that’s almost identical to her last night as CEO. “You’ll have to look into more birdseed for them, we can’t have National City’s hero under-informed.”

There are a half a dozen retorts to that running through Kara’s head, but most would give away her identity, and the rest would seem argumentative at best. Hardly the tone she wants to take.

“What has you at CatCo so late?” she asks instead, walking slowly to Cat’s side and mirroring her posture. “Surely even the great Cat Grant needs her sleep.”

“It’s not 3am yet, Supergirl, I can still make my curfew. And you looked like you needed a break.” There’s real concern in Cat’s voice, and Kara smiles a little at the reminder of how much she cares. Behind her walls and copious defense mechanisms, there truly isn’t anyone with a heart like Cat Grant’s.

“There’s been a lot going on lately,” Kara admits, turning to look out over the city. Even with her senses pulled in she can hear sirens a few miles away, and she’s tempted to fly off. But a quick glance in that direction shows it’s nothing serious, and Cat’s right. She does need a break. “I think everyone’s been trying to get back to normal, criminals included.”

Cat turns as well, taking a sip from her scotch as she considers Kara’s words. “That doesn’t mean you can’t take a night off, Supergirl. Honestly, you should know the importance of that by now. You’re not invincible, and pushing too hard won’t do you any favors. You need a few hours to relax, talk about something mindless and inane. So lose the cape and take a seat.”

“You want to talk about the weather? Seriously?” Of all the potential outcomes of landing on Cat’s balcony Kara had considered, small talk hadn’t made the list.

“I want to talk about something that doesn’t make you think. The weather, what you thought of the latest movies you’ve watched. Even what your favorite foods are. Off the record, no worrying about what you do or don’t say.” Cat’s tone is even, but Kara knows what that offer has to be costing her. To give up an exclusive, even an exclusive on something so relatively low importance, is nearly unheard of.

“You’d go off record so I can relax for a few hours?” she can’t help asking. Kara doesn’t want to hurt Cat, doesn’t want to sound surprised or accusatory, but she can’t quite believe what she’s hearing.

“Everyone deserves time for themselves. Even you, Supergirl. Now, I believe I told you to lose the cape.” Cat doesn’t seem offended or bothered by Kara’s disbelief, just firmly set on getting her way. And Kara is very good at following Cat’s orders, especially when it comes to something she’s wanted for weeks now, but felt too guilty to take on her own.

So without another word she’s carefully detaching the cape, folding it reverently and setting it on the table before sinking down onto the couch. Cat follows quickly, perching on the opposite end with a pleased grin. And it’s nice, even if Kara wishes they were closer. Wishes she could still feel the barest hint of Cat’s warmth through the arm of her suit.

“I suppose I should’ve asked, have you had time to take in any movies lately?”

Secure in the fact they aren’t on the record, Kara doesn’t bother censoring her response as much as she might any other night. “A few, my sister and I try to schedule movie nights every week or so as things permit. But it’s been a while since our last evening.”

“What did you watch?” The question is honest, curious, and Kara smiles a bit before answering. It’s been too long since she’s had a conversation like this.

From movies they turn to food, though Kara changes that subject fairly quickly. Talking about food is the best way to get her appetite started, and she’d rather not cut the night short to silence a rumbling stomach. Or worse, make Cat feel obligated to buy her food.

Somewhere around a discussion of the local softball tournament and which team was likely to take home the trophy, Kara notices the way Cat is sitting. It looks casual on first glance, but there’s a tension in her shoulders that Kara recognizes from more late nights than she can count. And her smile, the way she’s talking, it’s not the softer side of Cat that shows so rarely.

That’s why Kara hadn’t noticed at first, because Cat  _ does _ seem relaxed. Certainly far more than she does on any given day in the office. But Kara has seen her when she’s truly let her walls down, and this isn’t the same person. This is Cat pretending.

And if anyone needs a few hours to quit pretending, it’s Cat Grant. Kara has glimpses of that chance here and there, has people who know and see both sides of who she is. She can joke with Winn and James while in the suit, she can discuss the latest DEO gossip with Alex while wearing her glasses and cardigan. But Cat has very few people she can trust enough to truly open up. Even with Carter, she still has to be the parent. She can be real, but she can’t ever truly relax.

So before Cat can ask another question, Kara takes the lead. “What about you, Cat? Anything new and interesting going on in your life these days? You’re not going to leave me the only one sharing tonight, are you?”

It’s easy enough to spot the conflict on Cat’s face at the question, and Kara wonders at it for a moment. Because Supergirl is as close to an equal as Cat Grant has in this world. If Cat doesn’t feel comfortable opening up to her there has to be a reason. Something has to be holding her back.

But it’s gone too quickly for Kara to gain any insight, and Cat does seem to relax. Her posture eases, her words flow a little easier.

It’s better.

But it’s not enough.

Because everything she’s sharing is something Kara already knows, something they’ve already discussed outside of the boundaries of hero and confidant. Things Cat has shared with Kara Danvers, during whatever short meetings or harried phone calls they’ve exchanged. Those moments are all too infrequent, and can hardly cover an entire life full to the brim of activities and outreach.

When Cat skips from mentioning a museum trip she’d discussed with Kara, to a banquet she’d hosted that Kara helped organize a few of the finer details, it all clicks. Because there had been a major scheduling fiasco in the weeks between those events, one that nearly derailed everything Cat has been working on lately. One that Kara spent all night fixing for her.

And yet Cat doesn’t mention it now, not even in the abstract. Between that and the way every story is something Kara already knows, it’s clear what’s going on.

Somehow, Cat knows who it is in the suit. Kara’s suspected as much for years now, but there’d never been direct confirmation. Nothing conclusive, nothing more than a few dropped hints here and there.

But if Cat is serious about letting Kara relax tonight, then she can’t let on that she knows this time around. Not even a hint. Not without starting a new round of the game they’ve played for so long. And she can’t bring up anything in her life that’s too close to something Kara might need to fix either, or Kara might feel obligated to take care of it. If not right this minute then at least eventually, and right now she’d be focusing on that future time rather than relaxing.

And Kara knows it’s nearly impossible to change Cat Grant’s mind when she’s decided on something. Bench pressing Fort Rozz for a dozen sets would be easier. 

But Kara isn’t a quitter, and she’s not about to let Cat sacrifice herself just so National City’s hero can take a break for a few hours. Not when it puts added strain on already burdened shoulders.

“Why won’t you relax with me, Cat?” Kara can’t help asking, shifting a little to close some of the distance between them.

The honest plea nearly breaks Cat’s formidable resolve, Kara can hear the soft exhalation that’s almost her name. Almost, so close, and so Kara moves closer still. Her need to take care of Cat the same way the woman has always looked after her is too strong to deny, and lends her a courage she’s never felt before. Not even in the cape with her sister and team standing ready behind her.

This is a different kind of courage, a quieter courage. One that lets her hand reach out to take Cat’s, the other moving to gently lift Cat’s chin until they’re looking each other in the eyes. 

“It’s just us here tonight, we can let it just be us,” Kara whispers, hoping that’s enough. An admission, a plea, a desperate longing all rolled up in one simple statement.

For a long moment it seems Cat might pull back, and Kara braces herself for the rejection. She’s made the first move, now it’s up to Cat to push forward if that’s what she wants.

One breath, then two, and Kara swears she can feel Cat’s exhale on her lips as her eyes slip closed, waiting for the next move in their dance. Time seems frozen, the slow thud of two hearts in the background of her hearing the only proof the world is still moving.

Then soft lips are meeting her own, and time snaps back into focus with a clarity Kara hadn’t known existed. This is what she’s needed, far more than even a relaxing night without the weight of endless expectations. This is what she’s been longing for, what she’s been searching for.

And if Cat agrees, it’s what Kara will make sure she never loses again.


End file.
